December begins with the return of YouTube's New Year Countdown, a special destination page presented by HTC, spotlighting 31 of the year's most memorable videos.

Special effects maestro freddiew kicks off the Countdown with a bang, courtesy of his eye-popping Flower Warfare video. As one of YouTube's break-out stars of 2010, Freddie joins some well known YouTube personalities in this year-end roll-call, which also features some of the year's most viral memes, pop parodies and other notable clips. To find out which videos made the shortlist, you'll have to check out the Countdown, as a new hit is revealed each day, holiday calendar style.

New Year Countdown is just one way that we're covering the highlights of this bumper year for video. Keep your eyes peeled for more special year-in-review coverage, and check in on the Countdown channel during the month to see if your favorites are featured.